Columbus Businesses Prepare for SOA Protestors

The school trains military personnel from all over the Western Hemisphere, but protesters claim graduates have returned to their home countries, using their training to commit human rights violations; something WHINSEC has denied.

SOA protesters mentioned last year that they were in talks about moving the protest to Washington D.C. The move has not been finalized which means businesses in Columbus will continue to reap the benefits this jam packed weekend.

Edna Ledesma Mexican restaurant sits conveniently across the street from where thousands of protesters will gather this weekend.

“The crowd, let me tell you it’s a lot of people coming,“ says Ledesma.

Ledesma employees have already been putting in the extra efforts to prepare for the large crowd. She says they have already doubled up on their food shipments.

“Two months ago, somebody called to make sure we had like 60 or 70 seats for them.“

It is one of the biggest events for the restaurant each year. But the event could be moving to Washington D.C.

“There’s constant discussion within the movement about where we are most affective, how can we close the school best,“ explains SOA Communications Director Hendrik Voss.

He says the protesters want to target Congress in their quest to close the school, but some people within the group believe the protest should stay at the site where the school is. For now, Hendrik says the protest is here to stay.

“This will always be a big part of the campaign until the school of Americas is closed for good,“ he says.

As long as there are protesters, there will be revenue, and that bodes well for Ledesma business.

“It’s like celebrating a big party here, dancing, singing, it’s pretty fun,“ she says.

For a couple of years, an event called God Bless Fort Benning was held on the same day as the SOA watch protest at a different site.

But it won’t be held this year because the foundation that funded it no longer exists.

We did try to contact WHINSEC about this weekend but we have yet to hear a reply from them.